00:00So I jumped on a podcast earlier in this week,
00:02and I told you, you know, with some folks in Dallas,
00:04and one of the things that they asked me was,
00:06what is, you know, which of the, I guess,
00:09matchups that could happen in sports between Dallas and Houston
00:11are the strongest rivalry, has the strongest rivalry?
00:15And I think the answer there is probably Rangers and Astros.
00:19Not for me.
00:20Really?
00:21No, Rangers and Astros, you face them the most,
00:23and it's probably second.
00:25It's a pretty good, it's getting, gaining intensity.
00:29I think it might be losing intensity now.
00:31Well, we've seen them in the last couple of years,
00:32clearing benches and everything else.
00:34Yes.
00:34You know, there is some intensity there.
00:37As much as we mock the silver boot because of its, you know,
00:42inherent silliness.
00:44Which, by the way, not sure that that one's coming.
00:46That one's coming to Houston this year.
00:47But as much as they do, you know, sort of highlight that.
00:51But even though you only face them, what is it, every five years,
00:54the Cowboys?
00:55It seems, although you've had them in back-to-back years,
00:58this year because of the quirks of the schedule making.
01:01But generally speaking, the division, every four.
01:04Yeah, you don't see them as often as you want to.
01:07Doesn't matter.
01:08You think so?
01:09Doesn't matter.
01:10You think that, I would not have.
01:11Because even the preseason games, sorry,
01:13even the preseason games against the Cowboys are relatively intense.
01:16If you just look at the stands, it doesn't matter a damn lick at all.
01:23And it's still, the fans are still getting in fights in the stands and everything else.
01:28No, I know it just logically doesn't make sense.
01:32You only face them once every four years.
01:34Still the Cowboys.
01:35From a Houston perspective, still the Cowboys.
01:37That's interesting because that's the genesis of the question.
01:40How strong is this rivalry actually sports-wise?
01:42Because I know city to city, we don't like them, they don't like us.
01:46And it is very almost brotherly in that way.
01:49You start talking about Texas, hey, we're going to click up and we're going to fight you.
01:52That's the family.
01:53But when it comes to end of the family, I don't like you over there.
01:56We're going to take every opportunity to crack on you that you can.
01:59And honestly, they've taken opportunities, including in their schedule release,
02:02where they did a whole, mind you, when the Cowboys do their schedule releases,
02:06it's like 10-minute videos.
02:07Cut it down.
02:08Calm down.
02:09We don't need, because it literally was eight minutes plus of some level of,
02:13because they have a lot of Tylers on their team, like we got Jalen's.
02:16So apparently they did a Tyler intelligence agency thing,
02:19and this was the dossier for the Texans game.
02:23Location, Houston.
02:25Ghetto Dallas.
02:25Mission, re-relocate Houston's team to a more fitting city.
02:29QB could use a fresh start.
02:30Suggested cities.
02:31Yeah, let's just send them wherever.
02:33Honestly, it doesn't matter.
02:36Ghetto Dallas.
02:37I never heard that before.
02:38Because it's not a thing.
02:39Okay, it's not a thing.
02:40I'm like, is that something they just made up?
02:42Yeah, I guess.
02:42Yeah, that's not actually a thing.
02:44They talked about re-relocating the team, which is real.
02:47Those are fighting words.
02:48Yeah, I know.
02:48And then they talk about C.J. Stroud leaving, which I imagine is not.
02:51Okay, fair.
02:52Everybody's not as mad about that one.
02:53But I'm like, they're bringing a little spice here in a place that I didn't,
02:57I would not have agreed with you coming in that that's a big rivalry,
03:00in part because there's just so much, they're so separate.
03:03They don't play each other.
03:04They don't run the same lanes, AFC, NFC.
03:06Doesn't matter.
03:07Really?
03:08Doesn't matter.
03:09And you were talking about the Astros-Rangers, which I would think is the second,
03:13kind of losing some steam or whatever.
03:16And I think that's more just because rivalries, when one or both of the teams aren't good,
03:20it's just hard to maintain.
03:21Cowboys, Texans, doesn't matter.
03:24Just play it, and it will be the most intense.
03:28That parking lot, don't miss it.
03:30It's going to be wild, man, because so many Cowboys fans and everything else.
03:35No, look, this is just my opinion, man.
03:39So, you know, people can certainly disagree.
03:42To me, everything I've seen, 30-whatever years here, 37 years, doesn't matter.
03:48Yeah, that's such an interesting perspective because I just keep defaulting to like the ALCSs that we've seen,
03:53or at least the postseason matchups that we've seen between these two teams
03:57and the ways in which it just gets grimy between Astros-Rangers,
04:02a series that you have this weekend coming up.
04:05And because the Astros can't pitch, and honestly, right now, doing a little...
04:09Can't really hit as well either.
04:11But the Rangers really can't hit.
04:12They're just awful when it comes to their OPS+.
04:16This almost feels like, I was wondering, are you going to get any of that spice still
04:20because, you know, they're kind of almost evenly yoked when it comes to like the level of play right now,
04:25just on the lower end.
04:27But, yeah, maybe I'm missing something.
04:297-1-3-5-7-2-4-6-10.
04:31We're already seeing people on the text line like, no, I agree.
04:33In fact, people going to the place where they go, the Cowboys are the Texans' biggest rival.
04:38And I don't know that I could go there.
04:39But, man, I would not have guessed that that is the strength that we are viewing this as.
04:45Cowboys, too.
04:46Yeah, I can say, do you feel like it's amped up even more
04:49because they don't play as often?
04:51And so this is kind of like not a one-in-a-lifetime chance,
04:55but since we don't see them this often, that we got to go all out.
04:59If the Cowboys play the Texans every year,
05:01if there was some sort of seismic division shift,
05:04it would clearly be easily top five in the NFL.
05:08If they played every year, do you feel like it would be better than the Texans versus Titans?
05:13By a long shot.
05:14Really?
05:15Yeah.
05:15By a long shot.
05:17No, I'm telling you, man.
05:18Man, it's, hell, like I said, preseason games.
05:22You're like, dude, these guys are just like third-teamers trying to make a roster.
05:26But do you think part of that plays because Cowboy fans just everywhere?
05:31Yeah, that's a big part of it.
05:32That was the thing I was going to ask is how much of this feels like a unique rivalry
05:35and how much of this is just when Cowboys fans are everywhere,
05:38and especially with the particular way that Houston has developed.
05:40We know, right?
05:41The Oilers leaving, that time period in between.
05:45And everybody got an uncle who's a Cowboys fan that's from Houston.
05:50Well, that's the thing.
05:51And even when the Oilers were here, but especially when the Oilers left and the Cowboys,
05:57keep in mind, that was mid-90s.
05:59That's when the Cowboys were at the apex of their greatness.
06:04I hate saying that.
06:05But anyway, so many Cowboys fans just grew up in Houston and became –
06:13it didn't matter if the Oilers were here or anything, they were –
06:15and that's generational.
06:16To this day, and we have a lot of listeners in the Beaumont, Port Arthur area,
06:20tell me if I'm wrong.
06:21I think it's 40%, maybe 50% of football –
06:24Oh, out in the Golden Triangle?
06:25Yeah, yeah, yeah.
06:26Football – maybe even more – or Cowboys, really.
06:29Yeah, probably.
06:29Yeah, yeah.
06:30No, that's probably –
06:31so how would you rank –
06:32because I see someone on the text line kind of getting to this point.
06:35How would you rank this on the must-wins for the Texans this year?
06:39Well, you know how I feel about must-wins, but –
06:41No, I guess, but I figured that you would do it as a must-win.
06:45This is a must-win.
06:46Culturally.
06:46Yeah, culturally speaking.
06:49Yeah, yeah.
06:49Must-win for Thanksgiving at least, man.
06:51So that way you show up at Thanksgiving and you're dragging rights.
06:55You walk in the door, how about them Cowboys?
06:58That alone is a must-win.
07:00You walk in like Stephen A.
07:01Yep.
07:03You got a cowboy hat on and a suit.
07:04Yep.
07:05So when I ask the question –
07:06You know what?
07:07It's probably top three.
07:08It might be.
07:09Yeah.
07:09It might be, right?
07:10Just culturally, right?
07:11Just bragging rights.
07:12Yeah, the bragging rights of it all, right?
07:15I mean, top three beating out –
07:17like, I was trying to see, which of the AFC South ones would you –
07:20It might be top one.
07:21You think it might be the one that just – it means that much?
07:24Yeah.
07:25Yeah, because I know –
07:26I think a lot of people would love to beat the Titans every single time.
07:30And look, I know it's a couple of Titans fans that's here that left when the Oilers left,
07:35but everybody got that uncle that's a Cowboys fan, man.
07:39That's so irritating.
07:40Man, look at the passion on the text board just now.
07:42It's leaping out.
07:43It's leaping out.
07:45I had miscalculated because I was like, is this as strong of a sports rivalry as maybe some of the
07:50other ones?
07:50And obviously, it's not going to land in the same way as a lot of other sports rivalries that have
07:55the opportunity to go for it.
07:56But yeah, it's apparently still a more strong one than I realize.
08:00Is it fair to say Rangers and Astros a second?
08:03Oh, absolutely.
08:04No, I think they're second.
08:05Okay.
08:05Yeah.
08:06And by the way –
08:07Rockets, Mavericks, I don't even think that's actually a rivalry.
08:09I don't think there's any actual –
08:10What about Rockets first?
08:12Rockets, Spurs is a rivalry.
08:13You think so?
08:14Spurs, Mavericks – oh, yeah.
08:15Rockets fans hate Spurs and vice versa.
08:17And Spurs, Mavs is a big rivalry because they've got a big history, you know, postseason and otherwise.
08:24The thing about this that's kind of unnerving or at least going to make it more interesting, Cowboys are going
08:29to be pretty good, too.
08:31Cowboys are going to be pretty good.
08:32It depends on how much Christian Parker, their new defensive coordinator, how much change that he's able to bring in,
08:38and how much they're capable of, you know –
08:42injecting some of this talent that they have.
08:44It's not like it's a crazy amount, but they've added in some cornerbacks so that they're not as putrid.
08:48They obviously add Caleb Downs in the draft.
08:50I don't know that it's so good, but, I mean, this is also an offense in the Texans that you're
08:54hoping to see some level of uptick from.
08:56So, I think that that will be a really fun front of this as well.
08:59You have the Texans offense versus the Cowboys defense where you go maybe the lesser of the size of the
09:05football matching up.
09:06And then the two strengths, which is one of, if not the best offenses in football last year in the
09:10Cowboys,
09:10and one of, if not the best defenses from last year.
09:13I think that that's going to be an explosive game on top of the parking lots and the stands.
09:17That might be one of the most fun games that we have coming up.
09:19Let me ask you this, just to kind of put a bow on this.
09:22Play the role of Cal and Hannah McNair.
09:26All right?
09:27What do you think Cal and Hannah McNair would be telling D'Amico Ryans if they could tell him anything
09:33in this sense?
09:35Just don't lose to the fill-in-the-blank.
09:39Well, if I'm playing the role of Hannah, it's the Titans.
09:42Fair.
09:43I'm sorry.
09:43Fair.
09:45Speaking of rivalries, she might say Cowboys and Titans.
09:49I got two requests.
09:51I think if you ask the owners, you know, a little truth serum, I think they would say just don't
09:56lose to the Cowboys this year.
09:57Really?
09:58Okay.
09:58For a number of reasons.
10:00Yeah.
10:00You know, not just on the field.
10:02And I think that's your answer.
10:04Yeah.
10:05Somebody said Golden Triangle to Houston Transplant.
10:08They're putting this at 75% Cowboys.
10:10I don't doubt you.
10:11I don't.
10:12Every time I've been there, it's like Cowboys crap everywhere.
10:14Man.
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